I LIBRARY OF CONGRESS. | 



Tr'6& 



TONER COLLECTION. 

Chap, ^^_3.12^. 

She/f ^ ^,S._ I 



UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 



J 



THE EVENING STAR 



WASHINGTON: 

Saturday February 20, 1892. 



WASHINGTOI^'S YOUTH. 



An Authentic Statement of Facts 
Concerning His Early Career, 



HIS SCHOOLBOY DAYS 



Little Known of His Childhood— His Method- 
ical Ways as a Youth— Extracts From His 
Journals— His Neatness of Dress and Study 
of Deportuaent— Habits and Character. 




Pabt I. 

Written for The Eveoimr Star by Dr. J. M, Toner. 

ABIT8 MA^ THE 
man; manners, the 
gentleman; reason, 
judgment and enter- 
prise, with well-directed 
industry, the success- 
f u 1 and exemplary 
citizen. Is genius in" 
nate or acquired and 
is it possible in the 
child life of an indi- | 
vidual to discover in- | 
dications'of capabilities 
and of character? Dress, 
education and the conventionalities of an age 
give almost as much sameness to the conduct 
and appearance of a people as does the bi'ick- 
maker's mold to the clay he works. "Want of 
intercourse with the world influences not only 
the customs, but the mental and pliysical 
characteristics of communities, causing them 
to become iilmost as uniform as the dress they 
wear. Nevertheless it is, I apprehend, a 
universal vanity to think ourselves endowed 
with special talents and so commendable that 
they ought to be indulged. Many, though 
quite deficient in energy and perseverance, 
behove they have great aptitude for the affairs 
of life; superior, indeed, to their neighbors, 
which they could demonstrate if they tried or 
had the opportunity. 

People acquire the routine of every-day life 
almost automaticaHy, but under varying de- 
grees of mural concepts, ethical culture anfl 
notions of obligations and duty. I » 



Nevertheless, 
implanted in tlie minds of all is the idea of a 
greater than themselves and an admii-ation for 
the leader, the seer and the prophet. No 
clime, age or race has an exclupivo prerogative 
to either the genius, the mental powers, the 
virtues or the vices which distinguish a people 
and alone elevate or degrade ni-.tions. Yet 
while there is great sameness, when the race is 
viewed as a unit, among individuals are much 
diversity of brain power and aptness for pur- 
suits, with degrees of reason and self-control 
which lie at the foundation of all the virtues. 

It is not my purpose to inquire into the 
mysteries of that divinity "that shapes our 
ends," but to look backward and discuss some 
of the factors essential to grea-tness and Avhich 
it is conceived must be either inborn or ac- 
quired in very early childhood. From time 
to time characters possessing, to a phenomenal 
degree, the heroic and philanthropic virtues 
spring unexpectedly and without special train- 
ing into prominence and become leaders of 
the world. 

George Washington, whose birth we com- 
memorate today, was one of the most con- 
spicuous illustrations of this fact in history. 
Many believe he was expressly created, pre- 
served and directed by Providence for the 
special work he performed for his country. A 
people may have surprises of this nature, but 
Providence is methodical and has no accidents. 
Washington's child life. 

Was the child life and early youth of George 
W^ashington entirely commonplace and without 
indication of the greatness of the coming man? 
We think not. It would be hazardous to at- 
tempt to fix the age in days, months or years 
in tfie life of an individual when impressions 
for good or evil may first be made as object 
lessons and which exercise a dominating influ- 
ence in after life. It is believed precepts im- 
bibed in early youth possess a controlling in- 
fluence over actions in mature and even in old 
age. If the theory be correct that much of 
what is greatest in great men may be traced to 
the nobility of character in their mothers what 
a debt of gratitude the world owes to that 
worthy Virginia matron, Mary Washington. 

From his tenderest years hi's teacher by ex- 
ample and precept was his firm, tender and 
sensible mother, to whose benign influence he 
attributed whatever of virtue he possessed. 

We know less of the child life of George 
Washington than we could wish. The family 
Bible records George's birth and baptism. Up 
to his lather's last sickness, when George, then 
in his eleventh year, was sent for at the dying 
man's request, his name is rarely refered to 
except by his school teachers or by his mother 
and brothers. The desire to supply incidents 
to illustrate this period of his ilto led one of 
his first biographers to draw somewhat largely, 
I apprehend, upon his fancy. 

My desire is to assemble some data relative 
to tlie youth, habits and personal characteristics 
of George Washington. His services as patriot 
aed statesman are familiar to all. 



a. 



HIS SCHOOL TEACilEKS. 

Biographers furnish the names of two of 
George's school teachers; it is, however, prob- 
able that he had others. The first was a BIr. 
Hobby, a tenant of his father's, who was also 
sexton of the parish Oberwharton in ytafl'ord 
county, Va., and taught iu one of the "old field 
school houses" near by. George's studies un- 
der him were, of course, of the simplest kind, 
as reading, writing and ciphering, but the 
bright boy had at the same time the moral in- 
fluence or a good home and the example and 
instruction of conycienlious pareuis. He was 
not born to or reared in any enervating luxu- 
ries or the leading lo effeminacy or evil environ- 
ments. Parental influence and his school tasks 
satislied his demands and prepared him for 
the self-denials and hardships of the ciurveyor'a 
tent, the frontier cabin and the camp of the 
patriot soldier. 

The other teacher, Mr. Williams, conducted 
a more advanced school in Westmoreland, to 
which George was sent shortly after his father's 
death, boarding meantime with his half 
brother, A.ugustine. who married a Miss Ayiet, 
and resided at the oldhomentead, where George 
was born, on Pope's creek. It was at this 
school that he made his greater advances and 
acquired his proficiency in mathematics and 
surveying. Is' ot withstanding the embarrass- 
ment of a limited education by force of genius 
and manly perseverance he supplied the defi- 
ciencies and discharged with distinguished 
ability the trusts of as heavy responsibilities as 
ever rested upon any man. As a pupil he was 
noted tor his punctual attendance, orderly con- 
duct, devotion to study and his popularity with 
his school-fellows. He was the preferred umpire 
iu their disj^utos, the leader m their sports of 
running, leaping, wrgstling, pitching the bar 
and other games. 

' HIS BEOTHEr' LAWRENCE. 

I When George was between seven and eight 
i years of age his half brother Lawrence re- 
i turned from England with a good education 
I He possessed a tine, manly figure, and was the 
; beau ideal of George, wiio saw in him the 
model man of business, with the manners of a 
j gentleman. Lawrence, although fourteen 
years older than George, looked with admira- 
tion upon his brother, whom he found com- 
panionable much beyond what his age might 
suggest, and whose expanding intellect and 
perfect rectitude of character merited his 
highest regard. 

It is prooable that the ensign's commission 
in the Britisu navy procured for George in 
174U was obtained through Maj. Lav/rcnce 
Washington and his friends, but doubtless the 
boy,lisieningto the tales of brave deeds and glory 
to be won, acquiesced iu their views and would 
have gone into navy service had not his mother 
objected. Washington was already an ad- 
vanced pupil in the school of self-control, and 
gave no outv/ard evidence ot disappointment at 
his mother's decision. No sulks or poutings; 
no attempts to run away from home and go to 
sea^ in defiance of maternal authority, but for 
another year or more 



he continued at school 
iwider the immediate inliuence oi' his mother 
and his elder brothers. Throughout all of 
Washington's writings, whenever refernece is 
made to his mother, either in his youth, ma- 
ture manhood or advanced age, it is done with 
the most becoming and dutitul respect. 

HIS CARE AND METHOD. 

George's neatly kept school copy book, made 
between the age of thirteen and sixteen years 
still in good condition and preserved in the De- 
partment of State, exhibits his fine penman- 
ship, proficiency and accuracy, as well as his 
aptness in mathematical demonstration and 
drawing of geometrical fip;nres and plats of 
surveys. From early yduM he had a mental 
method of his own* for analyzing questions 
coming before him for consideration, examin- 
ing them in their immediate ana remote effects 
and generally reaching conclusions that were 
just. From boyhood he was noted for sound 
judgment andability to concentrate the powers 
of his mind almost at will upon any given sub- 
ject. He early acquired a mastery of 
method, and in all ths afifairs of life it 
never deserted him. While not demoustrative 
in his temperament he ,was politely social and 
strongly attached to his friends.-. Hfs occupa- 
tions from an early period led him into associa- I 
tion with persons older than himBelf. | 

While attentive and respectful to ladies he I 
was never what, at this day, would be called a 
"ladies' man." A good and entertaining con- 
versationalist, ho was never a ready public 
speaker. Even in advanced life, while reading 
his carefully prepared state papers, he exhib- 
ited much nervousness. Without having a loud 
voice he was a clear and deliberate reader. i 

[his eakly joukkal. 

The earliest records of his inaependent opin- 
ions apart from his school books, if we except 
his agency in formulating his version of the 
"Kules of Civility and Decent Behaviour," are 
to be found in "A Journal of My Journey Over 
the Mountains," begun March il, 1747-8, when 
he was just ono month over sixteen years of 
age. Washington held a commission from 
William and Mary College as a public surveyor. 
A record of this fact was made at Culpeper 
Court House July 22, 1749, but it is probable he 
was a licensed surveyor several years before 
that. Even at this age he possessed not only 
the expert knowledge of a surveyor, but ex- 
hibited surprising fortitude and perseverance, 
associating with business men in a business 
way and discharging important trusts with a 
steadiness of purpose and ability which elic- 
ited universal commendation. By his genius, 
probity, perseverance and attainments as a 
surveyor he achieved a reputation for meritori- 
ous performances at the age of sixteen above 
all contemporaries. Washington attained his 
full stature before his twentieth year, was an 
athlete of the first order— tall, strong and of 
graceful carriage. He was a skillful horseman, 
fond of field sports and accustomed to vigor- 
ous and prolonged bxer tion. 



HIS DEESS AND MANNER. 

He was neat and careful in his dress, but not 
the least inclined to foppishness. Whatever 
he made use of or wore he wished to be in good 
taste and the best of its Jiind. He was fond of 
children, considerate of Iho feelings of others, 
kind and liberal to servants, punctual to en- 
gagements, circumspect in his intercourse with 
people in general, painstaking and explicit in 
his business transactions. A memoraudum in 
his journal of 17i8 gives minute directions to 
his tailor, M'hich begins as follows: '-Have my 
c,oat made by the following directions to be 
made a Frocke with Lapel Breast." Ac The 
memorandum is long and very specific in its 
directions, > o - 

Nor did he negiGct to study what was becom- 
ing in manners and deportment, as is mani- 
fested in his version of the '"Rules of Civility 
at'd Decent Behaviour," of whose underlying 
principles be was master iu a high degree. His 
nabit of noting his personal expenses has pre- 
served for us the following fact: "September 10, 
1748, cash, 10 shillings paid the music Master 
for my entrance to the dancing class." 

July 17, 1758, he opens an account against 
Mrs. *Mary Washington. There are many 
charges in this account, chiefly for money lent 
his mother anuualiy or ottenor to the close of 
her life. Beneath the last entry is written: 
"Settled." 

Washington grasped a knowledge of the prac- 
tical and useful affairs in life almost by intui- 
tion. 

HIS INTEEEST IN AGRIOULTUEE. 

His earliest recorded observations on the ; 
value of lands, the quality of timber, the pro- 
ductiveness of the soil, &c., in his journal, illus- 
trate the maturity of his mind: "Sunday, 
■ March 13, 1747-8. Bode to his Lordship's Quar- 
i ter aboat 4 Miles highe'r up ye river, we went i 
through most beautiful Groves of Sugar Trees , 
& spent ye best part of ye Day in admiring ye 
Land." 

Washington was an enthusiastic admirer of the 
grand and sublime in nature and was, as his 
diaries show, specially observant of the beau- 
tiful native trees which were to be met with in 
our forests, never being at a loss to tell with pre- 
cision where the finest specimens of the various 
species were to be found. 

Later in life when he was embellishing the 
lawn and grounds of Mount Vernon he took 
pains to transplant to them hundreds of select 
specimens of the grandest indigenous trees of 
our country, from near and remote localities, 
noted either for their effect m the landscape, 
their shade, graceful forms, beauty of bud, 
leaf, blossom or fruit or for the variety of their 
autumnal tints. 

UNDEEGOING HABDSHIPS. 

While his engagements as a surveyor brought 
him many opportunities for observing the 
grandeur of nature, they also imposed numer- 
ous hardships and nrivatioas. On a spare leaf 
in his journal is the draft of a letter, without 
date, but written in 1748, to "Dear Bichard," i 
in which he describes some of his discomforts. ! 



He writes: "Nothing would make it pass of 
tolerably but a good reward, a Doubblelooii is 
mv constant gain every Day that the weather 
will permit my going out and sometimes six 
Pistoles." From the tone of this and the drafts 
of other letters in the same book, to youthful 
friends, it is evident he at first felt sorely his 
isolation and want of companionohip. But 
there is no intimation anywhere that he lacked 
the fortitude or perseverance necessary to bear 
the privation or perform the duties he had 
undertaken. , •, . 

Early in life he manifested the fixed determi- 
nation'to earn more than His expenses that he 
might at all times have the means to help 
others and forward his own plans. Washing- 
ton's earlv surveys, it will be remembered, 
were chiefly in the unsettled parts of the 
Shenandoah valley and along the Potomac 
river and its larger branches in Virginia. For 
want of habitations the surveyors were obliged 
to camp out in improvised tents. His journal, 
under date of "March 31. 1748," has the follow- 
ing record: "Early this Morning one of our 
Men went out with, ye Gun & soon returned 
with two Wild Turkies we then went to our 
Business run of three Lots & returned to our 
Camping place at b tumps." 

As illustrating his fortitude and perseverance, 
the draft of the following letter to a youthful 
friend in the fall of 174y may be quoted: "I 
have not sloep'd above three Nights or four in 
a bed but after Walking a good deal all the 
Day lay down before the tire upon a Little 
Hay Stiaw Fodder or bearskin whichever is to 
! be 'h.ad.''—[-/ournal of My Journey Omr the 
' Mountahis, p. 63.] 

i It will be remembered that at the time this 
journal was written the country west of the 
Blue Ridge was the home and hunting ground 
of the Indian. 

In March, 17i8. a war party of Indians, re- 
turning from the south, with one scalp, stopped 
at the surveyors' camp for the night, and were 
induced, for a bottle of rum, to give an exhibi- 
tion of their war dance. — {^Journal of My Jour- 
ney Over the Mouaiains.} 

The following memorandum from this jour- 
nal, without date, but probably made in 17-19, 
shows George's solicitude for the business in- 
terests oi his brother Lawrence, who had 
gone to England chiefly on the business of the 
••Ohio Company:' 

-"When I see my Brother Austin to Enquire of 
him whether he is the Actinii- Attorney tot my 
Brother and as my Brother Lawrence left 
Directions with the Hon. W. Fx to remit his 
Pay as Adjutant whether it would not be more 
proper to Keep it to Pay the Notes of Hand 
that's Daily coniing against him and to Write 
Word to Williamsburg to Acquaint his Hon: 
my B: A: to write him word." 

HIS BUSINESS HABITS. 

still more characteristic of young Washing- 
ton is the following record in 1748: "Mcmo- 
raudom to charge Mrs. Ans. Washington with 
4-9 and 18d the 30 of July to a Maryland House- 
wife as also Major Law: 



. Wasbiugtoii with 1-3 
lent 15 of August 5-9 the 17 lJo2-6 Do: I read 
to the Eeigii of K: John In the Spectators 
Read to No. 143." 

Ill a small dilapidated ledger, probably the 
first openexi by George Washington, may be 
' found accounts against the following named 
eighteen persons. Their names, witn the years 
i in which the entries were made, are here given 
I in alphabetical order: Mr. Richard Barnes, 
1749; 3Ir. William Bernard, 1749; Charles Car- 
} ter Janr.. 1750; George Fairfax Esqr., 1748; 
[Mr. James Hunter, 175U; Mr. John Lewia, 1748; 
Darby McKeaven — Great Cacapohou, 1750; 
William Miller of Losi River of Cacapehon, 
! 1750; Mr. Thomas Turner of King George, 
1748; Mrs. Ann Washington, 1748; Augustine 
Washington, 1748; Mr. Baily Washington, 1747; 
j Maj. Lawrence Washington. 1748; Mr. Lawrence 
! Washington,of Stafford, 1747; Mrs. Mary Wash- 
ington, 1748; Robert Washington Junr., 1748; 
Mr. John Welton So Branch Potomac, 1750; 
Mr. John West Junr., Fairfax, 1749. 

The following accounts against his brother 
Lawrence and his sister-in-law, Ann Washing- 
ton, made up as they are of small items, show 
his methods as well as his notions of exact jus- 
tice and fair dealing even with his relations. 
His charges against strangers are kept with 
equal exactness: 

Major La we Washington Dr 
1748 ^S.D. 

August 15 To cash lent you at the falls 

of Potomac 1 3 

'* 17 To cash lent you to pay Ned 

Barred's exp 5 9 

" 19 To do to pay your Boy's exp. 2 6 
Per Contra Cr 
1748-9 

Feb 14 By cash at Loo 5 

Mrs. Ann Washington, of Fairfax Dr 
1748 £ S. D. 

July 28 To cash paid Maryland woman 

for you 4 9 

Feb 15 To cash at whist 2 6 

Feb 25 To do 57>^ 

Per Contra Cr 
1748-9 

Mar 2 By cash 1 7K 

We deduce from these entries, the bulk of 
which were chiefly for small sums of money 
lent to friends, that Washington was of an ac- 
commodating spirit; the fact that he seems al- 
ways to have had money, shows that he was 
I thrifty, and his making book entries shows 
1 that he had business tact and methods was 
orderly and had a just appreciation of the 
1 value of money. He credits himself in this 
r book with small sums won at loo, whist and 
' billiards; also with small losses at these games 
with his friends. This habit of charging him- 
self with losses at cards and other games was 
1 continued through his life. These extracts 
from George Washington's early business ac- 
, counts suggest that the SevmpihiBOvdeTly 
methods which led him to submit to the lab(5r 
I of keeping an exact account of his personal ex- 
' penses throughout the 



revolutionary war. and 
which he presented to Congress to discharge in 
lieu of salary, existed in him from his youth. 
He never counted trouble or cost where a 
principle was to bo maintained, and his 
systematic methods secured to him time for 
every duty. 

His expeiise accounts show that on Septem- 
ber 20, 1747, he buys himKelf a two-foot gunter 
for 3^. This was probably the common flat 
drawing scale or rule, UBual'ly an inch and a 
half broad, divided and ruled to various meas- 
ures relating to surveying, navigation, trigo- 
nometry, &o., used chiefly by surveyors. 

AS A LETTER WRITER. 

It has been said and with much truth that 
Washington was a slave to his pen. Springing 
from his habit of explicitness of detail in en- 
terprises and intimately connected with this 
marked trait was his custom of taking notes 
and making records of observed facts relating 
to matters in which he was interested. On 
the value of approved methods he sententiously 
wroie, '•Contracts not reduced to writing are 
seldom performed to the satisfaction of either 
party." Though he was not an essayist or a 
writer of books, he was one of the most felici- 
tous letter writers in history. 

Nearly every subject of practical interest to 
a people in a new country — such as farm man- 
agement and productions, commerce, inven- 
tions, manufactures and the right of the peo- 
ple to choose their own form of government 
and rulers — engaged his attention and are dis- 
cussed with great ability. 

His earliest business letter of which I have 
any knowledge is one from the valley of Vir- 
ginia, May 5, 1749, to his half brother. Law- 
rence Washington, at the time a member of the 
house of burgesses, and is directed to Wil- 

I liamsburg. 

In this letter matters of much importance to 

1 his mother and to his father's estate he dis- 
cusses in a familiar and comprehensive manner 
and points out the great injury a proposed new 
ferry would be to iheir plantation, and hopes 
the assembly will not authorize its establish- 
ment at the place proposed. 

While in ordinary business matters he could 
safely rely on his own judgment, in those re- 
quiring the technical knowledge of a lawyer he 
never failed to employ one, as is attested by 
the many fees to attorneye entered in his cash 
book. His fees as a surveyor and his salary as 
adjutant general puthitn in possession of funds. 
It was apparent to all who knew him and ob- 
served his aptitude for and his attention to 
business that he was sure to get on in the 
world. 

I As early as 1750 George Washington became 

i tne owner of, at least, two tracts of land in 
Frederick county, Va., and from this time on 
he was more or less extensively engaged in 
buying, patenting, selling and leasing lands. 
A de«line in the health of Lawrence Washing- 
ton led him to throw much of his private busi- 
ness upon George, who was not only capable, 
but desirous also of relieving him. 



HIS riUST MILITARY COMMISSION. 

In the spring of this year Lawrence re- 
signed the office of adjutant general, with the 
rank of major, which he held in one of the 
four military divisions into which Virginia 
was then districted, and it is suppesed he was 
iustruaierirtal in having George appointed his 
successor, with a salary of £150 a year. The 
duty of the office was the organization, equip- 
ment and drilling of the militia in his district. 
This appointment is good evidence of the 
early maturity of both his mind and body as 
well as of the correct and orderly- habits of 
George Washington, otherwise the governor 
and council could not have felt justified in his 
selection for so important an office while he 
was still under age. With his usual conscien- 
tiousness ho immediately set about qualifying 
himself for the proper discharge of his duties. 
For months he made a rigid study of tactics, 
the use of the sword and the evolutions of cav- 
alry. In this study he received instructions 
from Adjutant Muse of Westmoreland county 
and Jacob Van Braam of Fredericksburg, both 
of whom were capable and had served with 
Maj. Lawrence Washington in the Carthagenian 
expedition. Up to this time, beyond the tra- 
ditional tales of his school boy drills, there is 
no evidence of his having given any special at- 
tention to the study of arms. This was 
George Washington's first military com- 
mission. The duties which this office 
imposed and the studies which it led 
Washington to make may have awakened 
in his mind dreams which found their most 
congenial exercise in the benefits they con- 
ferred in after days upon his country. His 
mind had broadened with years and the inter- 
course he had had with active business men, so 
that at twenty he was well fitted for an en- 
larged field of duty and responsibility. 

I HIS TRIP TO BARBADOES. 

1 For relief to his pulmonary trouble Lawrence 

j Washington was advised by his physician to 

1 spend the winter in Barbadoes, which he re- 

' solved to do. It was his desire and it was like- 

I wise counseled bv all bis friends that George 

i should accompany him. This course, it was 

: seen, would oblige George to give up his very 

sitisfactory 'and profitable engagement with 

Lord Fairfax, but this he at once concluded to 

do. It was. indeed, but an opportunity tor 

Georce to exercise one of his noblest traits ot 

character-gratitude. The brothers were ar- 

dentlv attached to each other, and no request 

Lawrence could have made would George, for 

a moment, have hesitated to grant. 

They took passage upon a vessel freighted 
with Virginia products, which sailed from the 
Potomac September 28, 1751, and landed sately 
November 2 at Bridgetown, in Carlyle bay, 
Ibl-md of Barbadoes. This was the only time 
George Washington was ever beyond the 
bounds of wmxt is now tho United htates. As 
was his custom he began a journal and noted 
evervthing of interest occurring on the voyage 
and during his stay upon the island. 



The daily 
I entries, Except for a period of two weeks while 
I he suffered from an attack of smallpox, were 

uninterrupted until his return to Mount 

Vernon. 

STUDYING NAVIGATION. 

He had studied the theory of navigation in 
connection with surveying, so he ac- 
cepted with eagerness the opportunity on this 
voyage for a practical application of the 
knowledge. He copied the ship's log book 
into his journal and made daily astronomical 
observations under the instruction of the 
ship's captain, noting the weather, direction 
of the winds and currents, vessels sighted and 
passing events, keeping his journal as orderly 
! ^is though he were actually in charge of the 
ship. Unfortunately the paper upon which 
this journal was written is so poor that it is 
rapidly crumbling to dust, and already much 
of it is lost beyond recovery. It is due to the 
Department of State to say that they are put- 
ting the Washington papers in the best possi- 
ble condition for their future protection and 
preservation. ,. j> ^ , . . . ^ 

It was characteristic of Washington to make 
a hasty survey of localities visited for the first 
time and to acquire their history. Adhering to 
this custom when he landed in Barbadoes he 
records the result in his journal with appre- 
ciative comments on its climate, population, 
government, commerce, productions, military 
• defenses, &c. Bridgetown had, even then, its 
theater and it is probable that it was here that 
George Washington witnessed, for the first 
time, a dramatic performance. He alludes to 
the play he attended. "The Tragedy of George 
Bromwell," in the following cautious words: 
"The character of Bromwell and several others 
were said to be well performed. There was 
music adapted and regularly conducted." 

Washington, whose principle it was to thrive 
by industry and live within his means, was sur- 
prised at the pecuniary embarrassment fre- 
quently overtaking the planters in Barbadoes. 
His temarks on this topic are: "Howwonderful 
that such people should be in debt, and not be 
able to indulge themselves in all the luxuries 
as well as the necessaries of life. Yet so it hap- 
pens. Estates are often alienated for debts. 
How persons coming to estates of two, three 
aud four hundred acres can want is tome most 
wonderful." Lawrence Washington tailed to 
receive the benefit he had been led to anticipate, 
and resolved to try Bermuda in the spring. 1 
He also felt severely the separation from his . 
wife, and arranged with George to return to , 
Virginia and accompany her out to join him on 
the Island of Bermuda, to which he went in 
March. Accordingly George Washington sailed 
for Virginia on the 22d of December, 1751, 
arriving at Mount Vernon on the 4th of Feb- 
ruary following. 

THE DEATH OF LAWKENCE. 

Letters from Lawrence, after his brother left 
him, show an increased despondency and 
finally despairing of recovery he resolved, in- , 
stead of having his wife come out to him, that 
he would return home. 



. He reached Mount 
Vernou in May and died there on the 26th of 
July, 1752, and was interred in a vault he had 
built, which afterward received the remains of 
his illustrious brother. The paternal care ex- 
ercised by this pure-minded and a-^complished 
gentleman for his half brother George must 
forever link their names together in the hearts 
and memories of the American people. Al- 
though George Washington was still under 
legal age he was named in Lawrence's will as 
one of his executors. 

The estate was left to his wife and his sur- 
viving infant daughter^ Sarah, with a clause 
that in the event of his daughter's death with- 
out issue Mount Vernon and other propertjr 
j named should, on^his wife's decease, go to-, his 
j brother George. "" The infant died within a' 
year. 

It need hardly be said that George Washing- 
ton managed the estate with judgment and 
scrupulous fidelity. He leased the plantation 
for a few years from the widow, and finally , 
bought her life interest in it, thus becoming 
the absolute owner as well as proprietor of 
Mount Vernon. He had unusual capacity for 
business, and could not bear to be unemployed. 
Late in life, in giving advice to a young gen- 
tleman on the necessity of employment, he 
says: * 'Idleness is disreputable under any cir- . 
cumstances, productive of no good, oven when j 
unaccompanied by vicious habits." I 
•-»♦ ' 



THE EVENING STAR. 



WASHINGTON: 

MONDAY February 83, 1893. 



ClJOSliY S. NOYES.... ,.., JB:tlitor. 



WASHINGTON'S YOUTH. 

— — » . 

E is Services and Adventures in the 
French and Indian War, 



HONORS EARLY GAINED. 



How He Won His Spurs— A Perilous Mission 
to the Frencli Forts— His Diplomatic Ser- 
vice—The Disastrous Engagement at Great 
Meadows— On Braddock's Staff. 



Part II. 



Written for The Evenine: Star by Dr. J. M. Toner. 

In 1753 the conflict of interests between the 
French and the English for territorial pos- 
session v/est of the Alleghany 



mountains bagan 
to assume threatening aspects and Governor' 
Dinwiddie, with zeal and diplomatic tact, | 
resolved to serve notice upon the French in '. 
their forts near Lake Erie that they were tres- ; 
passing upon the territory of Great Britain and '■ 
warning them to depart in peace. The exocu- ; 
tion of this delicate and hazardous mission 
required a journej', going and returning, of 
over eleven hundred miles, through forests j 
inhabited by Indians, who were generally hostile 
to the English. To insure success the mes- 
senger must be a man of intelligence, courage, 
perseverance, experience in traveling through 
the woods and acquainted with the manners of 
the Indians. Washington's successful career as 
a surveyor beyond the Blue Bidge had already 
brought his name and character prominently to 
the attention of the governor and hif5 council. 
The commission was offered to him as one well 
qualified for such an undertaking. He accepted 
it October 30, 1753, and set out the same 
day, fully apprised of the difficulties to be 
encountered. At Fredericksburg he engaged 
Jacob Van Braam as French interpreter and 
then, proceeding to Alexandria, procured a few 
horses and other necessaries. At Winchester 
he secured baggage or pack horses and the 
remainder of his outfit, and going thence di- 
rect to Will's creek, arrived on the 14th. Here 
he engaged Capt. Christopher Gist as guide and 
four servants, Barnaby Curren and John Mc- 
Quire, Indian traders; Henry Stuart and Wil- 
liam Jenkins. 

Crossing the Alleghany mountains by the 
Ohio Company's route they halted atLogst'own, 
eighteen miles below the present city of Pitts- j 
burg, to hold council with the Indians. An In-.i 
diau interpreter, John Davidson, and three 
Indians— Half King, White Thunder and Jes- 
kakake — were engaged and accompanied the 
party as guides and hunters when the journey 
was resumed. At Venango, though pcilitely re- 
ceived by the French oificer in charge of the 
fort, Capt. Jouicarie, Washington, as the bearer 
of dispatches from Gov. Dinwiddle, was re- 
fei-red to St. Pierre as the proper person to re- 
ceive his message, i 

Another weary march of four days brought [ 
them to their destination at Fort Le Boeuf. ■ 
The Chevalier St. Pierre received Major Wash- ! 
ington with formal politeness and in due course 
delivered to him a sealed reply. 

A HARD JOURNEY. 

The journey back, owing to the lateness of 
the season and the fatigue already borne, was 
far more severe than the trip out had been. ! 
The horses were so jaded as scarcely to be able 
to travel, and after three days' weary marching 
Washington gave up his horse to help carry the I 
baggage, put Van Braam in charge of the caval- 
cade, equipijed himself in a hunting dress, | 
strapped his pajDers and some provisions tc his i 
back, and gun in hand, accompanied by no one ' 
but Gist, struck out on, the most direct route 
for Sfaawnopen Town ■ 



. After enduring great 
I hardships, shot at by a treacherous Indian | 
i guide and nearly drowned by being tiung from | 
' a raft by drifting ice while crossing the Alle- 
gheny river, they finally reached Mr. Frazer's ( 
iind rested, waiting for *the others to come up. | 
At Mr. Gi&t's plantation at Monongahela, 1 
fifteen miles above Frazer's, Washington bought [ 
a horse, and pushing on alone reached Belvoir '' 
January 11. Here he rested one daj', then set I 
out for Williamsburg and delivered St. Pierre's | 
answer to Gov. Dinwiddle on the 16th, after an j 
absence of only seventy-eight days. Washing- ! 
ton's embassy to the French commandant near 
Lake Erie was, considering the season of the 
year, the means at his command, the extent of 
: wilderness traversed, the hosxile Indians met 
and placated, all fraught with such danger and 
difficulty as to place its execution among the 
heroic achievements in history. 

This diplomatic step of serving notice on the 
French was deemed to be ofgrieat moment to 
British interests in Americat and gave dignity 
and character to the enterprise in Washington's 
eyes. The prudence, disputch and persever- 
ance exercised by Washington in his journey 
and in his intercourse with the suspicious and 
crafty Indians and the more subtile French 
was in every step of the mission marked by a 
high degree of address and judgment. The sol- 
dierly acumen, too, with wiiich he noted the 
defensible ana strategetical points in the 
route gave special value to his journal and 
elicited from the governor, counsel and 
assembly their hearty acknowledgments. 
His journal was written out from his note 
book in a single. day to accommodate the gov- 
ernor, who, by the advice of the council, sub- 
mitted it in that form to the house of burgesses 
as a report of the mission. That body ordered 
it to be printed and copies were sent to the 
governors and influential persons in the sev- 
eral colonies. It was also sent to the home 
government as a justification of the new policy 
inaugurated by the governor of Virginia and 
to stimulate the ambition of the crown to an- 
tagonize the French. 
I Praise of Major George Washington's cour- 
I age, prudence, diplomacy and perseverance 
! was universal, and, notwithstanding his youth, 
he was henceforth widely recognized as a capa- 
I ble and safe leader in public .nffairs. Move- 
ments for the political control of the Mississippi 
valley were rapidly drifting beyond the sphere 
i of diplomacy between France and Great Britain 
to that of open and armed hostility. | 

j HOSTILITIES BEGUN. J 

I Gov. Dinwiddle had become interested in the i 
Ohio Company, and immediately after receiv- j 
ing Maj. Washington's report as to the inten- I 
tions of the French about the head waters of | 
the Ohio ordered two companies of provincial i 
militia to be raised for sfervice at the forks of , 
the Ohio, and there to erect a fort. In Jan- 
uarj', 1754, Capt. William Trent was commis- 
eioned to raise a company of 100 men, appoint 
his own officers and rendezvous at the forks. 
Gov. Dinwiddle called the assembly to meet on 
the 14th of February, 1754. 



. in a special 
session, that they might grant the neces- 
sary authority and ijrovide the requisite I 
means for carrying out these measures, i 
After much entreaty and eome threats on the 
part of the governor, the assembly authorized 
the raising of a regiment of 300 volunteers and 
voted the requisite appropriation. George 
Washington, with characteristic diffidence, de- 
clined to accept the chief command of the ex- 
pedition, with the remark: "It is a charge too 
great for my youth and inexperience to be en- 
trusted with." But he did accept the ofdce of 
second in command and was appointed lieu- ^ 
tenant colonel, under Colonel "Fry. Neither I 
soldiers nor officers came forward at the call of 
the governor as promptly as he expected, so ^ 
that he was moved to issue a proclamation 1 
granting 200,000 acres of land on the Ohio to i 
be divided among those engaging in the expe- j 
dition. j 

Washington's expedition. i 

April 2, 1754, Washington set off from Alex- 
andria with two companies, amounting, to about 
150 men, for the Ohio. At or west of Winches- 
ter his companies were joined by that of Capt. | 
Adam Stephen and others, enlisted chieliy in the j 
valley of Virginia. Col. Fry, as commander-in- ' 
chief, was to follow, bringing with him the ar- 
tillery and remaining part of the Virginia regi- 
ment. 

. Before arriving at Will's creek Lieut.' Col. 
Washington learned that the few troops at the 
forks had been obliged by a superior force of 
the French to vacate their works and were then 
retiring to Virginia. The situation in which 
W^ashington now found himself was one of such 
gravity as to induce him to call a council of * 
war, in which it was decided to proceed to the 
Ohio Company's store house at Redstone creek 
and there await reinforcements. Washington 
wrote to the governor the particulars of the 
situation and requested that cannon of heavier 
metal than any on hand might be forwarded. 

To enable his little army to move he had to 
send back forty miles for wagons, and during 
the delay dispatched sixty men in advance to 
open a road, and on the 2yth of April, 1754, 
Washington, with the remaining 160 men, left 
Will's creek! It was a difficult task to make a 
wagon road across the steep and rocky moun- 
tains over which the artillery, coming with Col. 
Fry, could pass. Washington was no merely 
perfunctory lieutenant colonel in command of 
a detachment, but a strategist with broad and 
patriotic views as to the rights and duties of a 
citizen. 

Knowing that the legislature of Pennsj-lvania 
was then in session and that the assembly of 
Maryland would convene in a short time he 
wrote to the rcsi^ective governors detailing the 
situation of afiairs and the needs of the expe- 
dition and praying for prompt co-operation. 
On the 9th of Maj' he was, after' great labor, 
at the ''Little Meadows," only alDout twenty 
miles from Will's creek, full of courage, and 
perseveringly clearing a road to the Ohio. ' 
I ' 



' AN APPEAL FOR FAIIINKSS. 

Delayed for a day at the great crossing of the 
Youghiogheny* river while a bridge was being 
constructed, Washington on the 29th of May 
gives a striking exhibition of one of hie strong- 
est characteristics— love of justice— by^vriting 
an earnest protest to Gov. Dinwiddie against 
the unfairness of compelling the Virginia olfi- 
cers and men to serve for less pay than was al- 
lowed to the same grade in the regular army 
doing similar service. 

On the 18th he had written: "Let me serve 
voluntarily; then I will, with the greatest 
pleasure in life, devote my services to the ex- 
pedition without any other reward than the 
satisfaction of serving my country; but to be 
slaving dangerously for the shadow of cay. 
through woods, rocks, mountains, I would 
rather prefer the great toil of a daily laborer 
and dig for a maintenance, provided I were re- 
duced to the necessity, than serve upon such 
ignoble terms, for I really do not see why the 
lives of his majesty's subjects in Virginia should 
j be of less value than of those in other parts of 
' his American dominions, especially when it is 
well known that we must undergo double their 
hardship." 

Again'on the 29th, after showing that their 
pay, as lixed, would not clothe them and meet 
their necessary expenses, he says: "For my 
own part it is a matter almost indifferent 
whether I serve for full pay or as a generous 
volunteer. Indeed did my circumstances cor- 
respond with my inclination, I sliould not hesi- 
tate a moment to prefer the latter, for the mo- 
tives that led me here were pure and noble. I 
had no view of acquisition but that of honor, 
by serving faithfully my king and country." 

He adds: "I have a constitution hardy enough 
to encounter and undergo the most severe 
trials and, I flatter myself, resolution to face 
what any man durst, ae shall be proven when it 
comes to the tost," 

With three soldiers and an Indian guide 
Washington examined the Youghiogheny river 
for miles to ascertain whether it would be pos- 
sible to descend that stream in canoes and 
small boats, but this was found to be impracti- 
cable, and he continued his roadmaking 
toward the mouth of the Redstone creek,. 

A SCOUTING PABTY CAPTURED. 

French spies, Indian scouts and reconnoiter- 
ing parties from the enemy's camp doubtless 
kept the French commander fully informed of 
the progress and, approximately, of the num- 
ber of the Virginia troops. On the evening of 
the 27th of May Washington learned through 
his scouts that a reconnoitering party of 
French were discovered in a retired camp some 
six miles distant. Leaving a guard with the 
I ammunition and baggage in a place of 
1 safety ho set out with a guide and forty 
men to capture them if possible. 
It was raining and the night was ex- 
cessively -dark, but they groped their 
way to the Half King's wigwam, who 
piloted them to the Frenchmen's camp.. 
The English were discovered 



on their ap- 
proach, just about sunrise on the 29th, by the 
JFrench, who flew to arms; a Bharp engagement 
ensued, which was kept up for fifteen minutes, 
when the French gave way and were all cap- 
tured except one. Ten of the French were 
killed, twenty-one were taken prisoners and one 
escaped. Washington had one man killed and 
three wounded. 

The same day Washington wrote to the gov- 
ernor a full account of the skirmish. The 
French, after the skirmish, endeavored to 
make it appear that they were on a friendly 
mission to serve a summons on the English. 
But that the party was more than this was 
proven by the instructions found upon the per- 
son of Jumonville. On the 30th the captured 
French were forwarded with a detachment of 
soldiers under Lieut. John West and Acting 
Ensign Spiltdorph to Gov. Dinwiddie, then at 
Winchester. 

Washington's promotion. 
On the 3l6t of May Col. Joshua Fry died at 
Will's creek from injuries received by his horse 
falling on him According to military usage 
this threw the whole responsibility of the ex- 
pedition for the time being upon Col. Washing- 
ton. On the 4th of June, 1754, Gov. Dinwiddie 
promoted Washington to the rank of colonel in 
i the Virginia regiment, and at the same time 
1 appointed Col. James Innes of North Carolina, 
j who was daily expected at Winchester with 
I three independent companies from that pfov- 
j ince, to be commander-in-chief. From some 
fatality or want of management neither he nor 
) his companies ever joined Washington; had 
f they done so in season the result of the expe- 
i dition might have been quite different. On 
the 9th Adjt. I^Iuse, recently promoted to be 
major, arrived with nine swivels and 
a small s-ipply of powder and ball. 
He also brought "from Gov. Dinwiddie a belt of 
wampum and a speech to the Half King, with 
medals for the chiefs and goods for presents 
and rewards to Indian scouts, as suggested by 
Washington. The chiefs were invited to a 
council and assembled with tbeir usual cere- 
monious formality, painted and decorated in 
savage finery. Washington wore one of the 
medals at the council. Half Ki^ig was decor- 
ated and given the name Dinwiddie. A son 
of Queen Alequippa, whose friendship Wash- 
ington had secured in January by giving her 
an old match coat, was decorated with a 
medal and given,the name of Fairfax. The 
sachems complimented Washington by giving 
him the name Conotaucarius, the significance 
iJif Avhich is not known to the writer. 

On the 10th the camp was agitated by scouts 
bringing in word that a party of ninety French- 
men was approaching. Washington put him- 
self at the head of 150 men to meet them, but 
it was soon learned that it was a false alarm, 
occasioned by nine deserters from the French, 
whose numbers had been magnified and their 
intentions misunderstood. Oapt. Mackay ar- 
rived the same day with his independent com- 
pany of South Carolinians. 



Wasliinffton was 
now contronted with the dreaded problem of 
imving an officer who conceived because he 
Held the king s commission he could not re- 
ceive orders from a provincial officer, com- 
missioned by a governor. The men of the inde- 
pendent company would not assist in road-mak- 
ing unless paid a shilling sterlingextra per day. 
i.o avoid misunderstanding Washington left 
C%pt. Mackay at Fort Necessity, and on the 11th 
ot June proceeded with his own soldiers in the 
effort to open the road to Eedstone creek. At 
Grist s plantation, thirteen miles from Fort Ne- 
cessity, Washington received reliable intelli- 
gence that the French had been reinforced and 
were marching to attack him without delay 
He began to throw up intrenchments. called iii 
his working parties and held a council of war 
at which It was resolved to retreat until thev 
could be reinforced. 

THE ENGAGEMENT AT THE GREAT MEADOWS. 

On the 1st of July Washington's forces 
reached the Great Meadows, on their retreat. 
Here the Virginians were exhausted with fa- 
tigue, hunger and vexation, and declared they 
could not carry their baggage and drag the 
swivels any further. Washington sent off an 
express to hasten supplies and reinforcements, 
began to fortify his position and make the beet 
defense he could. He had but one day to clear 
off the ground, erect defenses and dig trenches 
himself working with his men. On the morn- 
ing of the 3d of July, while still engaged in 
strengthening the defenses of Fort Necessity, 
the French, in largo numbers, were reported 
advancing and to be already within four miles. 
About 11 o'clock they began the attack, which 
continued all day and was terminated at 8 
o'clock in the evening by the French request- 
ing a parley. This eventuated in an agreement 
of capitulation. Articles were drawn up in 
French defining the terms, which, after several 
interviews and modifications, were mutually 
agreed to. By the light of a tallow candie these 
articles were read and translated by word of 
mouth to Washington and his officers by Capt. 
Van Braam, a German, who had only an im- 
perfect knowledge of the French language. 
Chevalier de Pyroney, the only other person in 
Washington's command acquainted with the 
la^nguage, had been wounded in the early part 
of the action and could give no assistance. 

THE CAPITULATION, 

The points of the agreement as understood 
by Washington and his officers were that they 
should surrender the fort, be allowed to retire 
to the settlements, leaving their ..stores, except 
the artillery, powder and military accouter- 
meuts, which were to bo destroyed and their 
personal effects secreted until they could be 
sent for, as all their horses having been killed 
ov lost in the engagement, they had at present 
no means of transportation. Furthermore, 
they should give their word that no attempt 
should be made to settle on his Christian 
majesty's territory for the space of a year, and 
lastly all the French prisoners taken should be 
returned. 



For the faithful performance of 
j these things Capt. Van Braam and Capl. Stobo 
' should be held by the French aa hostages. It 
i was Washington's expectation that the prison- 
i era would be promptly forwarded to the French 
i and the liberation of the hostages would speedily 
i follow. 

But Gov. Dinwiddle had other views, and, to 
; the mortification of Washington, would not 
carry out this stipulation, so that the hostages 
' were detained and finally sent to Canada as 
; prisoners of war, and only after many years' 
. confinement either escaped or were liberated 
I when the French were driven from her Ameri- 
j can provinces. The expedition proved a mis- 
erable and mortifying failure, but from no 
\ want of enterprise, courage or perseverance 
i on the part of the brave and laborious detach- 
i ment i;nder Col. Washington, but from the 
! want of military knowledge, mismanagement 
I and meddlesomeness of the governor and his 
; advisers and the inefficient and neglectful com- 
I missary of ammunition and supplies. The de- 
feated forces under Col. Washington marched 
1 out of Fort Necessity with the honors of war, 
their regimental colors flying and drums beat- 
; ing, but chagrined, fatigued and hungry, and 
commenced their weary march of seventy miles 
back to the first habitation. The strong and 
able-bodied carried the loads and helped the 
feeble, sick and wounded to Will's creek, the 
only place where supplies could be had. 

On the 9th of July Col. Washington had re- 
turns made to him at Will's creek, showing the 
actual condition of the several companies in 
the expedition, the killed, sick, wounded or 
missing as well as the number of those able for 
service, and after seeing all made as comfort- 
able as possible he and Capt. Mackay, who left 
hie independent company at Will's creek, pro- 
ceeded to Williamsburg to report to the gov- 
ernor. The two independent companies expected 
from New York arrived about this time and 
were marched to Will's creek, where, with 
Capt. Mackay's company, they began the erec- 
tion of works to serve as a frontier post and 
which finally came to be known as Fort Cum- 
berland. 

THE RETURN TO ALEXANDRIA. 

The Virginia regiment, after resting a few 
days, marched first to Winchester and after- 
ward to Alexandria. Notwithstanding the dis- i 
appointing results of the expedition the as- 
sembly passed a vote of thanks to Washington 
and the other officers for their bi-avery and i 
their gallant defense of the country ana the 
rights of the king in the battle of the Great 
Meadov,^s. The names of two officers connected I 
with the expedition were omitted in this vote 
of thanks, viz: Maj. Muse and Capt. Van j 
Braam. The first because of cowardice and ; 
the latter under the apprehension that he had \ 
intentionally deceived Col. Washington in the j 
preparation of the articles of capitulation, i 
Three hundred pistoles (nearly $1,100) were J 
voted to be distributed among the men in j 
the engagement. j 



When thearticlcBOf capitulation were signed 
Washington had no copy of them in Engliah, 
and when they camo to bo carefully translated 
^ it was diacovered that they contained admis- 
! sions derogatory to him and his troops and 
concessions made as to the claims of France 
I purposely inserted, it was afterward stated, 
but not *80 translated, as to be understood in 
that sense by him or his officers, and which 
i could only be accounted for on the theory of 
an erroneous rendering of the text of the arti- 
cles of capitulation. Some distrust of the 
fidelity of Capt. Van Braam arose and his 
^ name was omitted from the list of otRcers 
1 thanked by the house of burgesses. Futther 
1 inquirj^ however, satisfied all that his imper- 
: i'ect knowledge of French was alone to blame, 
■Washington's conduct was carefully inquired 
.into by the assembly and by the governor. 
Nothing v.as found "to blame but much to ad- 
! mire in his courage and perseverance under 
,' most adverse circumstances and almost crimi- 
nal want of support. This was perhaps the 
most severe trial and imfjortant occuri-ence in 
' Washington s early life and military experi- 
j ence. It \raa proper that . the country should 
j know all the facts, that they rilight form just 
j conclusioxis. It was vital to his reputation and 
military aspirations in the future that the 
truth should be told and the causes of the fail- 
ure be placed where they belonged. 
I I have dwelt upon Washington's first mili- 
) tary operations and their unfavorable end- 
ing at greater length than I would otherwise 
j have done had not this reverse with the pecu- 
I liar questions arising in the Jumonville affair 
and the verbal inaccuracies in the oral trans- 
lation of the articles of capitulation taken place 
before the greatness and magnanimity of. 
Washington's chtti'acter were established to be' 
above suffering from misrepresentation. Wash- 
ingtonis conduct having stood the test of every 
inquiry by the governor and the assembly early 
in August he joined his regiment, then at Alex- 
andria. 

PLANNING ANOTHER EXPEDITION. 

The governor was doing everything he could 
to send at once another military detachment 
across the mountains to engage and dislodge 
the French at the forks of the Ohio, and ac- 
tually issued orders to that effect. The Vir- 1 
ginia' troops, for want of numbers and equip- [ 
ment, were totally unfit for the service de- ; 
manded. The presentation of facts concerning ; 
the actual condition of the Virginia forces by ' 
Washington led him into quite a correspondence 
with the governor and some of the members of 
the council. His letters on the subject at this 
time show how comprehensive and sound were 
his views on military affairs and how inadequate 
were the forces to the object the governor 
expected them to accomplish. Much to the 
regret of the governor the sending of another 
expedition that fall was abandoned. 



Washington's besignation. 

Dinwiddle then resolved upon radical 
changes in the organization of the Virginia 
troops, adopting a plan of having no officer 
higher than a captain. This measure, it was 
surmised, was devised bj' Gov- Dinwiddle, Gov. 
Sharp of Maryland and Col. Innes, and was de- 
signed to m'inimize the coloners power and 
prevent disputes in the matter, of rank. This 
reorganization would reduce Col. Washington, 
who, to avoid embarrassment, resigned his 
commission in October and retired to'Mount 
Vernon. In December. 1754. he leased the 
Mount Vernon estate from George Lee and his 
wife. Ann, late the widow of Lawrence Wash- 
ington, and took up his residence there. 

The ancestors of Washington were generally 
land owners and agriculturists. George Wash- 
ington either inherited or acquired in youth a 
love for this pursuit. In him a taste for culti- 
vating the soil was even more ardent than was 
his love of arms. 

INVITED TO BEADDOCK's STAFF. 

In the spring of 1755 Braddock arrived in 
Alexandria with two well-equipped British reg- 
iments, with instructions to proceed, after re- 
cruiting his forces in Virginia, to the capture of 
Fort Duquesne and the expulsion of the French 
from the Ohio. Gen. Braddock was well in- 
formed as to the abilities of Col. Washington,- 
and learning that he had retired from the serv- 
ice and Avas occupying himself with the duties 
of a farmer Braddock concluded to invite the 
promising young soldier to join his staff as an 
aid in the" expedition. Washington accepted 
the position, as he was desirous of seeing serv- 
ice under a capable and experienced officer, 
and May 10, at Frederick, in Maryland, was 
proclaimed an aid to the general, this position '^ 
removing for the time being all questions of ; 
rank, which had been such a source of annoy- j 
ance. He found the well-ordei'ed camp of the | 
British regulars a good school for study and de- 
rived much benefit as well as pleasure from his 
intercourse with the accomplished officers asso- 
ciated with Gen. Braddock. 

The history of this expedition is well known, 
as is also the splendid conduct of Col. Wash- 
ington in the disastrous battle of the Monon- 
gahela, and his heroic services in rescuing the , 
remnant of the defeated army and his main- 
taining as orderly a retreat as was practicable 
under the circumstances. Washington's per- 
! formance, although just out of a sick bed, was 
so gallant and fearless during the action and in 
the retreat as to merit and receive the com- 
mendation not only of the Americans, but also 
of the British officers and soldiers. All tongues 
sounded his praise, and from this period for- 
ward Washington was emphatically a man 
of mark not only in the estimation of the 
Americans, but of the British government and 
European military officers. 



/ . .. 

CALLED *0 THE COMMAND. 

The unprotected condition in which the fron- 
tier of Virginia was left on the defeat of Brad- 
dock's army and the remains of the British 
regiments going into quarters at Philadelphia, 
instead of remaining somewhere on the frontier 
to check encroachments upon the settlements, 
called for additional legislation and renewed 
efforts by Virginia for her own protection. 
The more the situation was discussed the more 
the public voice was heard to sound the praise 
of Col. George Washington, reiterating his 
especial fitness to command the Virginia forces ' 
to be raised for the protection of the settle- 
ments. It was no secret to the governor his 
council and the assembly why Ool. Vv'ashington 
had resigned his commission and that he would 
not again serve unless his rank, could be as- 
sured and respected. The assembly, therefore, > 
in directing the raising of troops and in pro- 
viding for their support, had this point also 
before them. The governor could not be in- 
different to the ■ facts under the new law and 
appointed Wa&hington, August 14( 1755. colonel 
of the Virginia forces to be immediatelv raised 
for the building of forts and the protection of 
the frontier, AVith the peculiar compliment of 
leaving to him the selection of hie own field 
ofticers. 

Seeing no probability that he could be un- 
pleasantly interfered with on the score of rank 
in his command of the forces, Washington ac- 
cepted and served with ability until, with the 
assistance of the Forbes expedition in 1758, in 
which he bore a conspicuous part, the French 
were compelled to abandon Fort Duquesne. 
The early military career of Washington has 
been dwelt upon with sume minuteness because 
it was the formative period of his character. 
These were the years in which he was study- 
ing, in a practical way, the art of war and the 
power and influence of armies under the con- 
trol of statesmen in molding the political insti- 
tutions of a country. 

Washington had always advocated aggressive 
measures against the Frerich and Indians, so 
that the result of the campaign gave him great ' 
satisfaction. Feeling tiiat his work was done 
in that direction he soon after resigned his 
commission. 

HIS MARRIAGE. 

For nearly a year he was betrothed to Mrs. i 
Martha Custis, and was married to her early in I 
January, 1759, settling down at Mount Vernon 
shortly after to the enjoyment of domestic life 
and the pursuits of an enlightened agricultur- 
ist. He was then in the unconscious plenitude 
of his splendid powers, his character formed 
and recognized by the leading men of his day. 



I Henceforth Washington is to bo viewed as I 
I Having fully demonstrated his powers and ca- 
pabilities under most trying circumstances, bo 
that he is entitled to be ranked as one of the 
most promising if not actually the foremost j 
: character in the colonies. The term character I 
' is used as indicating the well-balanced facul- ' 
ties resulting from the harmonious blending of i 
a vigorous physical organization, high moral , 
concepts and strong mental powers. Like the > 
circle, its excellence depends on its complete \ 
roundness, not on its magnitude. The wider • 
the intelligence the stronger the mind disci- i 
plined by reason and reflection; the higher the 
ethical culture and the greater the harmony in 
all the powers the more exalted will be the vir- 
tues; in a word, the more nearly perfect will 
be, the character. Truth, courage and man- 
hood are the central pillars in the temple of r 
personal rectitude, which in its totality we call ' 
nature or character. 



LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 




